Shenanigans

Late yesterday afternoon, I made the decision to take my sleepy toddler swimming, thinking it would settle him down. What I forgot was the settling down happens AFTER he gears up into overdrive at the sight of the gallons of water in a hole called a pool. Add to that sleepy = tantrums and I'm not listening! I have no idea why I forgot this. Why did this slip my mind? I've been doing this Mother gig for two years and whatever else it says on my blog ticker says now (if its still there). But I did and I paid. Paid so much by the time I half dragged, half carried my screaming, hitting, and biting toddler out of the pool area my entire body was shaking.
Hayden has this thing about getting out of the pool, standing at the edge and jumping back in as I catch him to keep him from going under and coming back up. Well, I put him by the edge of the pool like always, expecting him to jump back in. Instead he made a beeline for the deep end of the pool. And I'm still in the water! Just looking at my toddler about to jump into the deep end of the pool, luckily some bystander on the side of the pool nabbed the top of his vest just as his one of foot left the edge. I actually stayed for about five long minutes of pulling, fighting, tantrums and another beeline for which I called it quits. My body was shaking so bad, I could have cried at the pool area and even coming home he was still acting up, not wanting to go where I directed him on his push toy. AARh! Sleepy toddlers!
No more swimming alone with Hayden and definitely no swimming when it's really naptime.

This post was supposed to be about the pool incident but in a day Hayden has so many shenanigans, I decided to write about some recent ones. I could have several posts on this little guy doing exactly what he isn't or sneaking about until caught then giving me an eye that makes me think: "Should I melt or stand firm?" Sometimes it seems as if he's playing me like a piano, killing me softly.
Ever since I potty trained Hayden, he's refused ANY thing that covers his nether regions. Yup, no pull ups, no undies, no diapers at night. He is a 2 year old nudist. He has come around to at least letting me put on undies - At least until I'm no longer looking then: "off!" This of course is cool around the house but it has been hindering progress! I have been working on getting down potty training outside. Going when I'm on the run or at a friends or even at night, hard when he wants naked. He has to learn to pull down pants, undies and pee. He doesn't say "pee, pee" or nothing when he goes, just goes up to it and pee. So I have to let him just go nude and break my back chasing him around my coffee table until I wrestle on undies or pull ups. And undies he knows not to pee in but pull ups he thinks are diapers and will wet in them, I have done away with diapers.

Hayden loves raiding the fridge for goodies between meals AND snacks. " There gots to be some candy I can get." This usually happens once I leave a room or am cleaning, he will run into it and bring me juice to pour him, a package to open and fruit (which he is crazy about he will take it over chocolate MISSION ACCOMPLISHED). Overall, it's annoying my fridge is disorganized, I wish to get Hayden fed on a schedule as he will be in school, and I also know he does it because he can! But the kicker is the way he runs when caught or the smile he gives so innocent, so mischievous, he kills me!

Life in the fast lane

So life has been going a million miles per hour and life has taken over and I have little inspiration to step into the blogging world - I am barely hanging on!
After much fear and even more confusion I picked up a ball of yarn ( no it's not for the cat that I don't have) and some crochet needles checked out a book in crochet and you tubed my life away until I could do a slip knot, a foundation chain, turn a Chain, do a slip stitch, a single stitch and a double stitch. I have just been practicing and memorizing stitches for the most part but I have a few squares and funky unrecognizable patterns. But it's uber fun. I am beside myself in excitement that I am really learning to crochet and knit! Knitting I have been doing shorter I just started last week and can cast on and knit and last night I learned to purl. Which i am happy about because it was intimidating at first but now I can knit fast.
With it finally getting hot and humid enough to choke baby kittens, I have taken Hayden to the pool twice and he is a fish. He can kick and paddle already I even can let him go and he will swim with the help of his vest. I am totally investing in this kid some swimming lessons he loves water!
I am gearing up also for some major toddler crafts, now that Hayden is the King of following direction now and can sit still for more than a minute.

 

And Sickness Becomes Us

Hayden and I have been uber sick. Hayden has been hit with the works: puke, fever, diarrhea, sleepiness. It makes me sad he has to be this sick when others are enjoying our cold Spring weather (trust me cold Spring weather is a God send for the Central Valley) But he has been handling it like a champ. I love age 2- Terrible twos eat your heart out, this is the best most perfect age!
Me, I started with what I hate the most: sore throat, icky! Then I got overcome with a stinkin' cold! I hate being sick. Like really it sux the life out of me that  something can invade my body and make me feel like such crap and that I am so vulnerable to it.
The funny part about this is Hayden is handling it better than I. He has been cuddling with me (awesome!) No, I didn't just say it was awesome that my kid is sick and I enjoy the extra cuddles.  *side eye* Another thing he has been tolerating is the telly and some good books. He has become quite the t.v. person now that he is sick (mainly because he has no energy) he will sit and pay attention to it for longer now. And me reading him 50 jillion books with long narratives. He can talk well so he tells me "T.V., T.V." and hands me the remote and tells me what he wants to watch. He doesn't play too much with his cars but still begs endlessly to go outside and who am I to say "sit, veg in front of the telly no outside." Bad Mia! Nope, I dress him and enjoy the explorer in him. Maybe he will like nature and Earth as much as I do.
Then there's me I am whining and complaining about my cold, I thankfully have no sore throat anymore. YES.  

Putting my webcam to use

So It comes to this

Here to document my sickness

One shoe on, One shoe off

Absence

I have been gone so long it feels outstanding. I looming gap that I have not thought about. I must admit it felt sooo good not blogging. What? I had more time, it was completely different and I had more time to focus only on Hayden and I.




Emotionally lately I have been a nervous reck it's not cool feeling that way, or being as paranoid as I've been lately. Yes, there is reason, reasons I choose not to say but overall. I know I need change, change into something simple, not complex. May has been just a hard month for me as a person, my emotional state, the only thing not affected would be my parenting for Hayden. He has kept me sane and close as possible to the Earth during this time. My best friend thinks its the reality of my Mom leaving town. I don't know, but I do know I've never had an entire MONTH BE so bad.

And in the greater scheme of things, my son had a birthday. Birthday! Birthday! And he is no longer my 1 year old but my cutie pie 2 year old. Terrible twos my tail, I love him at this age I hope he never grows up. This time is too fun too precious, special and unique.


I have little pictures except some from DSLR because I was a genius and washed my Canon Powershot in the washer with my swimming things earlier this month. Nice...I know. Bad bad May.

Shaking it up

I know I haven't been posting much but its been because I've been insanely busy. Lately, I have been doing tons of writing, chasing after Hayden , snapping photos, and reading, reading, reading on photography. Another thing is I've been thinking about changing things up a bit on this blog. For a while now this has been Hayden's blog and I've thinking of indulging more of my husband and I in too not just leave it a Mommy blog, because there is so much more to me than just being a mom. And with Hayden turning two, I have gotten back many things that I didn't have time for, or was blocked creatively. lately, I have done lots growing, thinking, and agonizing. Over future where do I wish to be in so and so years, family, aspects, accepting this and that- whatever I've gone through alot.
And I've realized I have a hard time just putting myself out there. I would love to make many blogger friends and people know me the person- Not just my son and life as a Mom. Yes, I'm Hayden's mom but I am also Mia.
So hopefully, I will decide on what to do with the other blog- my photography- add it here or switch it to tumblr or wordpress. But I am looking forward to doing and posting more stuff and having people get to know me and my tiny family more. 

Mother's Day 2011

This mother's day was the best I could have ever asked for. Usually on Mother's Day I am indifferent, I am still on duty, I get a pat on the back,a few happy Mother's Day, a present or 2 and overall its any other day as always. I don't put too much into it when it comes to me.

this Mother's day was no different at first. My husband had to work,so on Saturday he cooked me breakfast, lunch, and dinner. he is a great cook so I love it when he cooks, which is more often than one would think.

I woke up at noon today- yes, noon. I originally woke at about 8am and realizing that the house was quiet, I went back to sleep. The toddler didn't wake me until pass noon. :)  !! I loved it! Even then we didn't leave the bed, but I switched on my partner in crime and parental BFF Netflix instant stream, put on the Backyardigans, and we sat watching it until Hayden got hungry. He even watched it as I set up Breakfast *cough* lunch. I returned to bed with the food! We ate, massacred the bed with crumbs, and I snuck some Spider man in on Netflix before we got up.

About 2 my husband's boss had a heart and let everyone off and we quickly dressed deciding to accept an invite to his parent's house. Eating was cool as always there and who doesn't like a dinner cooked by someone else on Mother's Day? but afterwards, Hayden didn't want to stay inside, so after much resistance I gave in, thinking they have a backyard that I envy might as well enjoy it. I grabbed a ball, Hayden grabbed an even bigger one and after playing chase, we did catch and kick ball.
Things like  this made me happy to be a Mom to Hayden: To see his face as he threw a simple sphere object in the air, giggling all the way, to breath in and sigh it out that life can be so simple and a pleasure at any and every time if it were new an different or actually adventure out and try new stuff.

I loved this Mother's Day because I realized that it WAS any other day- A day to appreciate and have a good time with my son. A time to take the day to day tantrums and applaud the new found independence and intelligence that brings on these fits from hell. A day like any other day that I wake up to my little alarm clock, happy to see me.

I love this Mother's Day because I am a Mother. I got to see Hayden do many cool "firsts" like riding a battery powered John Deere truck that everyone calls "Gator."

I got to see my husband play Daddy and give Hayden lessons on a trike.

Even Hayden going up to Grandpa's motorcycle, asking to get on it, making sounds like its on before grabbing the handles and moving them . Very proud Mommy moment, I just flashed to him being older and getting on it.

Or him having a mind blowing time getting on the actual tractor and crying when we pried him off of it! Just great, priceless stuff that makes me glad to be a mommy.



Of course, I took some pictures! Its what everyone wants to see anyway.

Riding Gator

Trike lessons from Daddy

On Grandpa's Motorcycle and tractor

Happy
Mothers Day to all, hope everyone had fun too!

my week in iphone pics

I am linking up w/ Amy. She does this link up of basically  a week in cell phone pics.

Playing at the park

Taking pictures w/ my Canon

Playing in the car

Daddy and son watching TV

top left: car seat, toy; bottom left: cheesing 4 da camera; center: smiles; top right: playing in my window; bottom right: playing w/ my tripod

Wkend Pt Deuce

Okay. I really honestly forgot that today was Wednesday, indeed 100 and 10% for the life of me I thought it was Tuesday. Where has my week exactly gone? BUSY. Busy doing Mommy stuff, not getting any sleep because my toddler wants Mommy to cuddle with him in his new bed, trying to my house organized (sent I got back from Los Angeles I have had little to no motivation to keep up with simple tasks such as putting laundry away). I have several laundry baskets waiting to be folded and/or hung, putting me behind in the dirty stuff because I don't want to wash and have more baskets. I really need to get on it A Sap BUT...I have a toddler that always wants me outside.
Then there's writing. Yes, I have started back writing, so happy I have gotten my mojo back. But it takes soo much time and effort to balance motherhood and getting in enough time to write. I am hoping to find some time to pen some poems that I can post on my LiveJournal. And I also have picked up my guitar again, yes Hayden still messes with it but I kinda brush it off because I am secretly overjoyed to the max that he even likes the darn thing.

Anywho I had a weekend. This weekend we were so rudely (not JK) awaken by David's parents asking if we wanted to meet up at a park and have Hayden play. Of course, I was still sleep at this time (No it was 11am like the clock said, I set the clock wrong *side eye*) So we crawled out of bed like the zombies we felt like and went to the park. This was our third trip to the park spring started but I really love the park as you can see, and have plans to travel all over Fresno to visit and make use of our many parks.




Hayden had lots of fun playing on the playground. He even convinced himself that he liked swings and tried many unsuccessful times to get me to let him swing. But he paid me back by climbing over and over again the contraption in the first and second photos, stopping my heart every time he did it. One more way of him showing me how much he isn't my little baby anymore but my little toddler that wants to do what he wants and do everything himself. As you can see he had much fun of Sunday was the brighter end of a pretty dismal weekend. ;( SO far this week has been better, I don't have much planned for this coming week except maybe realizing BIG TIME and getting some major writing done while I have David around for the one day he has off. Yeah, he is working on Sunday. He has been putting in some crazy hours lately.  I am totally looking for him another job, the one he has just has gotten too time consuming and he is almost near home. He needs something else, *here's to hoping*

Weekend pt1

This weekend didn't even seem like a weekend. My husband worked all day on Saturday in fact I didn't know it was even a Saturday until 4:00pm! I was woken up by my sister and cousin saying that my mom wanted to see Hayden before she left. We spent of the time at my Mom's. It was bittersweet for me seeing my family leave Fresno, I am not even sure when I will see them again. Hard...

Then I put Hayden down for a nap and before I knew it David was home. My mom had a couch that used to belong to David's grandfather and we had to get it and move it over to our place. It looks pretty cool in our living room and now for some reason our looks more homely and less like an empty space.
For weeks now I have been on the look out for Hayden a big boy bed, I simply felt it was time. So when my mom mentioned she would be leaving hers, I decided to take it for Hayden. So Friday night, extremely exhausted and all my husband and I decided to get Hayden's bed up. Hayden helped, he hindered, he jumped relentlessly on the boxspring before we finally go the bed up and in a position I liked. I wanted him with full size bed, he ended up a huge queen size bed that makes him look like a doll when he sleeps in it.
But man was it needed. Hayden loves it so, so much, he plays on it, jumps on it, and on Saturday once we went home he played on it ...and ...fall...asleep. Yup, the big bed gets major points on the Mommy scale, plus now we can lay in bed together and read.

 

Secret's out!

I have a secret...

I love drawing, there I said it, yeah I know not much of a secret but its still something ya didn't know. Anywho, so does the hubby but when it comes to him and I he dusts me! He is actually planning on hitting up Aaron's whenever he gets some time off for a restock.I have been doing it for years now since high school, one day I might post some of my stuff but that's whole other post!
Since pregnancy, I couldn't wait until Hayden was old enough to start having fun with drawing, I have been looking an easel for months now for his 2nd birthday so he could do more drawing than what he does now. Ever since he could hold a crayon, we have sat down at his desk/table and colored, imagine my elation when I realized he really loved coloring and drawing his unrecoginizable lines on paper, even writing religiously on my walls (he actually wrote on the walls so much I taped paper to his door so he could have that "wall" to draw on)
I have been so waiting for Spring for the outdoors crafts and art options, I have been waiting almost 2yrs to do. During my latest excursion to Walmart, I impulsively stopped by the kids toys for some sidewalk chalk thinking this is less messy than finger painting. On Easter he ended up playing with sidewalk chalk at his grams thx to his cousin and Grandma/Grandpa's supply. Obviously, he loved it because he got it all over himself. We had to change badly, he had it everywhere. But it must have made a lasting impression because today when I couldn't find crayons (Daddy hid them and now we can't find them). So I decided to bust out the sidewalk chalk. As soon as he saw them he started going crazy, he couldn't even wait for me to open the box. Pictures of what we did

















Please forgive the picutres I simply grabbed my point and shoot camera, and started shooting not caring about nothing

Backyard

Early in the week Hayden finally got to meet his Great Grandparents! They live in Washington and they finally got to visit! Hayden took to them immediately, talking up a storm and laughing also wanting to play outside. David's parents live on a farm and have a huge yard that Hayden decided to take full advantage of.

He loved playing


and exploring randomly

the space he even used the flashlight as a mic to sing. He had a great time!

I Like

Currently I am reading "Annie Leibovitz at work" first off let me say I love her work she is a great photographer. This book really gives you an in depth of how many of her photographs have been taken it is great. I am really inspired when it comes to her work, I just love her photos. Recently, I decided to start an "I like" gallery of photos that I love and/or inspired by. The first picture to be included was this picture taken by Annie Leibovitz of Keith Richards while on tour with the Rolling Stones.





I love how broken and out of it everything is. The lighting equipment, sheets messy and disarrayed that "shouldn't be seen" keeps with the subject laying uncaringly,drunkenly, "broken" and taken apart, simply out of it.

Gone...

I have not neglected this blog I promise. I left Long Beach, Ca early and abruptly not on good terms with my family, I really was messed up emotionally for along time. I just think I needed to grieve on some of the relationships that were lost and I know that some people, even though they are family, are not needed in life. But it still hurts to think of having to cut off someone you have grown up around for years, boy did it hurt. It still does, but I know I don't need negative people in my life.
It has been also hard on me because I had to leave my younger sister who had just been released from the hospital following surgery. It has been tough too because the family I did have here are no longer here but still in Long Beach, ca.
I came home and I really felt lost, I have been gone only 2 weeks but it may have been a month. The time off I took from also have made finances soo different this month and way tighter, having to deal with that and my crazy family, I can say has been hard, hard, hard. I will be alright though. I have been taking a few photos though along the week, nowhere as usual but I do have some.





Playing with his cousins, hanging out at Target, Easter afternoon breakfast for lunch cooked by the hubby, Hayden happy to have candy in the forecast



Easter egg hunt

Isolation

In photography sometimes you need to focus or "isolate" the subject to this effect a small f/ stop is key. The smaller you go in f/ stops the less depth of field you will have, throwing everything except the subject out of focus. While tack sharp is the important, so is isolation- especially in portraits or places with not so attractive backgrounds.
Images that have one subject usually work great with isolation apertures.

My week in Iphone pics

Hayden was born bald so I was surprised to find out that his hair is now long enough to put in a pony tail


He is getting so big nothing that used to fit can fit anymore and I was in shock to see him sitting up to the table all big.


Having fun with wigs. It was a riot! Funny stuff, he stills looks cute


My younger sister was admitted to the hospital yesterday, requring surgery. Hayden put on my other sister's boots to go to the hospital and was rather upset when he discovered that he had to go to bed instead.

Touching up Tuesday

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This is my first time participating in Sweet Shot Tuesday over @ my 3 boybarians check out her blog and photo challeneges.

I took several macro shots for these photo challenges but this one stuck out ALOT. I love the "peeping tom" aspect of it. Its like we're on the outside looking in or even spying on something private or not usually seen. Ahh, I just love it! Makes my heart go pitter patter. Anyway, the first exposure is straight out of the camera. I love the shadows on the leaf and throughout the exposure in the sooc, but I am a fan of the edit because of the background and the light. Hmm, both are "good" in my book.

First I read a smart fix. Then I did a color variation on the exposure, increasing the green midtones, decreasing the red, and slightly lightened. Next, I adjusted hue/saturation, switching to edit greens first, I increased the saturation, lightened just a little before going to the yellows. Again, I increased the saturation and lightness. And we have our edit!

Black and White

This snap shot is of my son, originally part up of my week in Iphone pictures on link up on my other blog This So Called Life . All I did was converted it to Black and White using Photoshop Elements 7 for The Paper Mama Photo Challenge: Black and White.

Boy Do I Have A Story To Tell You

Aperture is extremely important to photography. It controls the amount of light passing through your lens and the second thing it does for your photos is it controls the field of depth. Now you're probably at huh? Well, how you ever seen pictures of people aka portraits and the background is a blurry mess? That is depth of field: the smaller the f/ stop the less depth of field you'll have. The bigger the f/ stop the more sharper your photos will be from front and back.

Today we will talk about f/ 22 or what Bryan Peterson calls the "storytelling" picture. In landscape photos tack sharp is the name of the game. In these photos, you'll want everything in your photo, from front to back, tack sharp. Just as the name says these photos tell a story. There is beginning (the foreground subject like the trees), a middle (the street and tree), and an ending (the housing and sun). For these pictures f/22 is the aperture you want, capturing the beginning, middle and end in sharp detail. Also a 12-24 mm or a standard 18-55mm is the perfect lens for the job because it will capture the widest view possible.

As of now I'm in Long Beach, Ca visiting family for about a month, and along on the trip my hard drive bit the dust. Yes, I'm so sad and angry because if I wasn't going to be able to use it it could have stayed home and been safe and sound. I'm going to see if the warranty can save it but my data is probably gone forever. Luckily, I listen so I back up like crazy in multiple locations. So yay for me some of my photos are still on my desktop hard drive. I am though going to get me another hard drive, hopefully a portable one, so that I can have a portable back up and have another place to back up my files. So my original photo for this exercise is somewhere on my desktop maybe but as of now I have no access to it, so I had to snap one just for this. Problems that I see are...

Not tack sharp there was some shake somewhere and done at 55mm instead of 18mm. I will be practicing this as I love landscape photography. Comments are welcome as well as links to your own landscape photos and tips. If you'd like to join in and do your own "storytelling" photo be my guess and drop the link in the comment box.

Bryan Peterson is the best pick up his books: "Understanding Digital Photography" and the great "Understanding Exposure" That book is recommended by everyone pick it up!

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Taken with my Canon Rebel T1i on a tripod 18-55mm lens at *55mm, f/ 22 for 1/8 sec

*This should have been 18mm but I really wanted to focus on the bushes as the subject

Our Week in Iphone pics

This week has been very busy. I found out very extremely last minute that Hayden and I's trip to Long Beach, Ca was pushed up. So I spent 3 days packing and not really updating anything so that I could be ready for the trip.

The first 2 pictures are of Hayden on the train after he settled down. He's actually looking out the window wish I could have taken more photos but I have to admit that I slept like a baby on the train and the bus.

3rd pic of Hayden about to open the gate to the backyard, for a surprise it was one of those electric cars. I got DSLR pics of him in it that I haven't uploaded just yet.

In long beach, I was reunited with my brand spankin' new niece who is my new muse when it comes to anything DSLR. She is an easy subject, she doesn't move that much!

Hayden playing with the remotes that I told him not to play with and me and my new hair style. I am used to my hair being way longer with my hair straightened so it feels odd still but on the flip side I wanted something new. I didn't want the bangs but now I kinda like them.

Hayden waiting for the train and his expression when it came in "Holy Smokes Batman!"

Hayden looking at the computer, me again, He has a thing for buckling car seats his and his cousins'. And finally Hayden simply being Hayden. Dimples. Dimples. Dimples.

Simply the Best

The Best freaking photo I have ever taken! I was surprised when I pulled up my shot in photo shop only to see no real big problems with this photo I snapped in a rush the morning of my departure to the City of Los Angels (L.A., Ca)

I love this photo, it just so happens to be my first macro landscape/nature photo and my first ever of a flower. I could jump up and down. And now for you viewing pleasure... enjoy.

Sweets for the Sweet

Hayden has a fascination with shoes. He enjoys putting on any new shoes he can find.

Hayden is a dancing machine

Inspiration All Around

I am a dreamer, I love and am fueled by the beauty in things. It is what draws me so much to photograpy. The emotion captured forever for eyes to behold, gazing as it inspires them. These beauties I did not take, though I wish I had. These are the efforts of my other passion, gazing upon the work of other photographers and falling in love all over again.

Ziggy. Apocalypse

By: Francois Benveniste

Zelie.Night birds

By: Francois Benveniste

Stephie. Fairy

By: Francois Benveniste